People in Senate District 26 will have to wait until late 2026 before they have an elected representative in the Arkansas Senate. Gov. Sarah Sanders on Friday (Sept. 26) set the special election for the race to correspond with the regular 2026 election cycle.
An election for the seat is required following the recent death of Sen. Gary Stubblefield, R-Branch.
The primary election for the seat will be held March 3, 2026, the primary election date in the 2026 election cycle. If necessary, the primary runoff will be held March 31. The general election will be with the 2026 general election set for Nov. 3, 2026.
The filing period for party candidates will begin noon, Nov. 3, 2025 and end at noon, Nov. 12. Candidates file with the Arkansas Secretary of State’s office.
Arkansas law restricts special elections to March, May, August, and November of a presidential election year, and February, May, August, November of all other years. Also, according to state law, “Elections called by proclamation of the Governor may be called in any month.”
In the proclamation, Gov. Sanders said it would be too difficult to hold a special election outside of the regular election cycle.
“It is impracticable or unduly burdensome to hold the special election within one hundred fifty (150) days after the occurrence of the vacancy,” Gov. Sanders noted.
Marcus Jones, chair of the Democratic Party of Arkansas, said Gov. Sanders’ decision means constituents in the district will not have a voice in the Arkansas Senate until late 2026.
“With today’s proclamation, the Governor has effectively silenced the voices of 85,000 Arkansans for her own political gain,” Jones said. “This proclamation is a middle finger to every voter in Senate District 26.
“Gov. Sanders didn’t just embrace taxation without representation today – she is weaponizing it against her most vocal and effective critics. This is a calculated abuse of power meant to silence the people who will be most affected by the proposed prison in Franklin County. Sanders is denying these voters a say in the 2026 budget, and it’s a disgrace. She is sacrificing the needs of her constituents in Franklin, Sebastian, Johnson, and Logan Counties to serve her own political agenda.”
Former State Rep. Mark Berry, R-Ozark, Paris businessman Brad Simon, and Paris businessman Ted Tritt have announced as Republicans for the seat open after the death of Sen. Gary Stubblefield, R-Branch. No Democrats have announced for the seat.
Senate District 26 includes parts of Franklin, Johnson, Logan and Sebastian counties. Stubblefield was elected to the Arkansas House of Representatives in 2010, and served one term (2011-13) before being elected to the Arkansas Senate in 2012.
Towns in the expansive legislative district include Barling, Booneville, Charleston, Clarksville, Greenwood, Lamar, Lavaca, Ozark, and Paris.